Do you think a monthly subscription plan good or bad
Good Idea?
Bad Idea?
0voters
Just a thought
I wonder how long it will be before Steinberg go down the same route as many of the top software companies are going down now like Adobe & Microsoft etc where by you pay a subscription fee for your software?
This does have its advantages & disadvantages. On the plus side it means you always have the most upto date version & if they decide to bring out a major change you automatically get it without having a big cash layout . On the down side it means you have a monthly (or sometimes annual) payment. This though is not to bad as it spreads your licence cost over the year (Adobe currently charge Ā£48 per month for there full package in the UK. This entitles you to install it on 2 systems however. Microsoft Office is Ā£7.99 per month & you can install on 5 systems).
I was dead against Adobe introducing the subscription service at first but I have grown to love it over time.
There is a simple poll above to leave your preferance. This is not a Steinberg poll itās just for my interest
I think this would be a bad idea. They would loose a lot of the homestudio,hobby users, which I think account for most of Steinbergs users. And what if you need to revist a project which you did in an older version how would you access the old version of your DAW software? I do not need yet an other subscription in my life, I buy upgrades as long as I can afford to.
I brought this up in an earlier discussion cos I think itād be a great ideaā¦ (There was much resistance LOL)
As long as:
A) Big changes, i.e., numbered versions, could still be installed separately
B) Itād be possible to roll back if a bad update came out (remember iOS 8ās first update? Some people couldnāt connect to the cell network after updating!)
I have an Adobe Creative Cloud as well as a MS Office Subscription. These work to my advantage. Bugs are fixed quickly and new features rolled out regularly. Adobe also includes a range of mobile applications that work hand in hand with the desktop programs. As far as cost is concerned, when you work it out, if you have been buying new Adobe versions on disk every year, the subscription model works out cheaper. Also no more useless boxes and disks stacking up in the studio (and eventually in landfill).
Itās a mindset I guess, I see studio/office software as a utility, like electricity and gas, Internet access. If youāre serious about music production itās a no brainer, a DAW is an essential utility. You canāt physically touch /handle electricity or gas , you simply use it. DAWs are the same. Subscriptions are easy to budget for and claim back in tax as a business expense.
As someone else said, the devil is in the detail. Iām not so sure that the Avid subscription model is as sound. Steinberg would have to be very careful that it a win-win dealā¦
If Cubase went subscription I would move to a different DAW. A Ridiculous Idea. Each year thereās a .5 update which costs Money and then a new version in December which also costs Money. Isnāt this enough of a subscription plan already?
I didnāt mean for my response to come off so harsh.
Unlike a previous person who finds the Adobe subscription an advantage, itās a waste of money for me. I was always happy to pay for the next big CS upgrade. My use is sporadic and generally in support of some major presentation. In the meantime, I spend free moments learning new skills. There are typically months at a time when the CS would not be touched. But, I have rights to use it when I have time.
My home studio use of music software is ongoing. However, a subscription would definitely cause me to move on.
Thatās clearly a big disadvantage in my opinion,there are people out there who donāt need/want to upgrade necessarily, I can understand paying a mnthly fee for antivirus softwares ( you definitely need constant updates so you donāt really have a choice ) but Cubase, no, just noā¦
In my case if that were to happen, I wouldnāt upgrade to this new system and go elsewhere period, I know right away that in the long run, you lose, paying monthly for something Iāll never own, no way ( thatās what it means )
In case of the Adobe subscription thing, if Iām right, as soon as you stop paying you canāt use the software anymore right ? So you just end up ārentingā a software, nothing else and you gonna pay more than if you actually purchased regular upgrades
About the .5 upgrade plans we get each year, I agree with most of you but we can still decide if you want to keep using our old version or not, in the case of a subscription, we canātā¦
Just my 2 cents, but I would clearly be disappointed if such a decision was taken, that would give good reasons for me to move on
Like it seems to be the same for good many peoples, my opinion on a subscription base is a āno wayā!
With the purchase of the software, you get to keep using it at your heart and content. Comes an upgrade, you decide to move forward with it or to stay behind with the older version that you own. To āsellā the upgrade, the software manufacturer has to give you something in it that will incite you to upgrade (new functions, new plugins, new interface, etc.). And then the choice is still yours to fork out the money or not. Subscription base, you pay your monthly fee like a good little Customer, so what is the incentive for the company then to add bell and whistles to their productā¦ youāre already onboard. The day you jump off the boat, youāre stuck with a pile of projects you canāt open anymore because you donāt have access to the software that can open it unless you obediently start to pay again.
The day it become subscription based I am gone for good!
Surprisingly no-one has mentioned the REAPER approach to pricingā¦ which honestly is ground breaking for the DAW industryā¦ or at least, mmmā¦ class-leading?
Fair Pricing
There is only one version of REAPER. We offer two licenses, depending on how you use it.
$225: full commercial license. $60: discounted license.
You may use the discounted license if any of the following is true:
You are an individual, using REAPER only for personal use.
You are an individual or business, using REAPER for commercial use, and the yearly gross revenue does not exceed USD $20,000.
You are an educational or non-profit organization.
I like the idea of the way Reaper is trying to operate, but they have a bit of a flaw. With no copy protection and a fully functional demo, if you download the demo, it works unrestricted and doesnāt time out - so you can run the demo license free for ever for what ever purpose you desire. So itās all down to trust - and that does not work in business.
Though does any commercial studio with a $20K+ turnover want to use Reaper?
anyway, back on topic, if Cubase goes to subscription, I will simply stay on the last dongled version and never upgrade Cubase ever again.
